1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a vacuum pump, in particular to a turbomolecular pump, to an arrangement having a vacuum pump, in particular having a turbomolecular pump, and to a method of operating a vacuum pump, in particular a turbomolecular pump.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Vacuum pumps are used in various technical processes such as in semiconductor production to convey away a gas to be pumped, also called a pump gas, out of a volume to be evacuated and to generate a vacuum required for the respective technical process. In this respect, turbomolecular pumps are of particular importance which are operated at high speeds and are able to produce a vacuum with high purity.
In the operation of the known vacuum pumps, a substantial heating of the vacuum pumps takes place which impairs the pump properties and the performance behavior of the vacuum pump, increases the maintenance susceptibility of the vacuum pump and reduces its operating life. It is known to equip a vacuum pump with a cooling device to avoid an excessive heating of the vacuum pump.
Known cooling devices such as water coolers or air coolers, whose cooling effect is based on a flowing around of hot pump components or cooling bodies attached thereto by air, are relatively complex and/or expensive and have limited efficiency. It is in particular only possible with difficulty with the known cooling devices to cool regions of the pump which heat up particularly strongly and are arranged, for example, in the lower region of the pump, in a locally direct manner such that desired temperature relationships are adopted everywhere. An excessive heating thus also occurs in the vacuum pumps cooled in this manner which impairs the pumping properties and performance properties of the vacuum pump and reduces its service life.
It is therefore the object of the invention to provide a vacuum pump, an arrangement having a vacuum pump and a method of operating a vacuum pump with which an improved pump performance and operating life of the vacuum pump can be achieved with a reduced effort and/or expense and with which in particular an effective and sufficient cooling is provided in all regions of the vacuum pump so that the vacuum pump is effectively protected everywhere against excessive heating during operation.